Happy Chinese New Year!

by Barbara Nevins Taylor

The Dragon is gone.  Welcome  another reptile. 2013 is the Year of the Black Snake. The Chinese say that means it’s time for discipline, steady progress and attention to detail.  And according to some,  Chinese custom suggests a snake in the house means good luck because they’ll always be something to eat.  Maybe that’s why snake sales are up in Hong Kong according to Taipei Times.

WHAT THE SNAKE MEANS

The snake is the sixth of twelve signs in the the Chinese zodiac and while it follows the dragon, it is far less beloved and exalted.  There’s conflicting information about the symbolism of the snake on a variety of Chinese websites.  But we take the most positive approach here.  We like what Hanban.com has to say.  It calls the water snake 2013’s cosmic symbol.  And they say, water snakes are good with money and seem to have plenty of it coming their way.

So the message seems to be: pay attention to detail, focus. work hard and this may be a prosperous year. Nothing wrong with that.